by E. A. James
Aldo stepped to the side, giving the trio now buzzing with curiosity a clear view of the event unfolding in the center of the ring.
“Holy shit,” Thor said, stepping forward to get a better look.
Kira immediately understood why everyone around them was on their feet, cheering. The sight of the large Arkadian male going head to head with three other prisoners in nothing more than pure hand-to-hand combat immediately sparked a nervous fervor inside of her.
One of the prisoners, a Terran man wielding a metal rod with the end filed down to a sharp, grotesque looking point, lunged forward quickly. The Arkadian slowed down slightly by his large size, allowed the blow to graze across his left arm. A trickle of bright red blood began to run down his pale green skin, but he didn’t seem to notice.
With what appeared to be minimal effort on behalf of the seven-foot-tall, three-foot-wide, hairless Arkadian, he grabbed hold of the metal rod and ripped it from the Terran man’s hands. The scene looked like a giant taking a toy from a baby.
The Terran man, now unarmed, scurried back just as the Arkadian flung his own weapon at him, the point of the homemade shank finding its home in the man's upper thigh.
“Nice hit, Kardok!” Aldo cried out, his high-pitched squeaky voice carrying over the deep roar of the crowd.
“Kardok?” Dario asked, not as interested in the fight as the others. “Did you say Kardok?”
“Yeah,” Aldo answered disinterestedly over his shoulder. “He’s a beast, isn’t he? Which is a good thing, because the poor guy has literally nothing going on upstairs if you know what I mean.”
As the Terran man hobbled out of the ring, the remaining two prisoners, a Bandurian female, and a Vorian male, lunged forward simultaneously ready to fight the seemingly invincible opponent. Just as the Bandurian began to charge, a small, almost concealed knife in the palm of her hand, Dario set his hand firmly on Kira’s shoulder.
“Kira,” Dario said, attempting to draw her attention away from the fight. “Did you hear that?”
“What?” she asked, turning to look at him.
“That man—that Arkadian—is named Kardok,” Dario said.
“Come on, Kardok!” Aldo cheered. “You’re stronger than both of them combined!”
“Well, that’s convenient,” Kira said, looking back at the Arkadian in the center of the ring.
He was now holding the Vorian male in a headlock, using him as a human shield against the Bandurian woman’s quick jabs.
“Aldo,” Kira said, walking over and stepping in front of him.
“What the hell are you doing? I’m going to miss the fight.”
“That man there, Kardok, we need to talk to him, too.”
The sound of the Bandurian woman letting out a frustrated cry and shouting “surrender” caused a ruckus to arise from the crowd that once again caused the feet under Kira’s feet to shake.
“Great, you made me miss the end,” Aldo said, pushing past her and trudging out to the center of the ring.
Kira spun around and grabbed onto Thor’s wrist. “That’s Kardok,” she said, “the other prisoner we needed to locate.”
“Really?” Thor asked, an impressed expression on his face. “He’s definitely someone I wouldn’t mind having on our side.”
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
"Kardok," Aldo said, introducing the giant of an individual to their group, "this is…" His voice trailed off and his nose twitched. "Actually, I don't think you've ever displayed the courtesy of introducing yourselves to me."
"Probably because you don't merit courtesy," Thor mumbled.
Kira elbowed him firmly in the side. “Captain Kira Winter,” she said, “and my filter-lacking companion here is Commander Rockhold. And of course, the ingenious Dr. Marner.”
“Right,” Aldo said, looking them over as if he were meeting them for the first time. “Well, there you go. That’s who they are.”
“And you’re Kardok,” Kira said, stretching her hand out in his direction.
Instead of shaking it and replying with a general pleasantry, Kardok merely stared down at her, a grin filling his entire face and a look of dazed confusion in his eyes.
“Did he get hit in the head or something?” Kira leaned over to Aldo and asked.
“No,” Aldo replied. “That’s how he always is.”
“Ah, I see,” Kira said. “One of those strong, silent types.”
A small laugh spread through the group as Kardok continued to smile on silently. Kira pulled back her hand and slid it into the large pocket of her blue jumpsuit.
“Kardok likes to come down here to the ring from time to time to stretch his legs. He’s a big guy, as you can see, so he needs some room to spread out,” Aldo explained.
“If I could fight like that, I’d be …” Kira started, but she was cut off when Kardok burst out laughing.
“Strong, silent type,” he said, chuckling to himself. “I get it.”
“How did you two meet each other?” Kira asked, smiling up at the still-grinning Arkadian.
“Well, years back I bailed this one out of a dispute with some Vorian warriors, and we’ve been a team ever since,” Aldo explained.
“It’s been really great getting to know you both,” Dario said, his tone slightly impatient. “But, I thought we were going to look at this communication device you say you’ve been working on.”
“Excuse me, Dr. Impatient,” Aldo replied. “But that is exactly what we’re on our way to do. In order to access it, we need Kardok here to come with us.”
“Well, now that he’s here, can we get going?” Dario said.
“Of course, right this way,” Aldo said, leading them back down the long hallway they had taken to reach the ring.
“Where are we going now?” Kira asked as they walked briskly.
“The comm device is in a different section of the prison,” Aldo explained as they hurried down the metal corridor. “We have to go through The Pits again, so stay close. And no getting into fights with anyone again, alright robo-soldier?”
“Remember who you’re talking to, vermin,” Thor replied gruffly.
“Why don’t we drop the pet names?” Kira said, looking up at Thor who was marching quickly alongside her.
Thor looked down at her and shrugged. “He started it.”
“Solid argument,” she replied. “But, I still think it’s better for the group if we at least try to get along.”
“And don’t forget that I have my muscle with me now,” Aldo called back as he led them back into the heart of The Pits. “So, your ‘strong man’ scare tactics won’t work on me anymore.”
“I’m his muscle,” Kardok said, looking back at Kira.
“Clearly,” Thor said. “He has none of his own.”
“So much for that,” Kira muttered to herself.
The group continued to move as quickly as they could through The Pits. The crowds continued to make mobility difficult, but thankfully with Kardok tagging along behind him, Aldo moved slightly slower, knowing that his companion’s larger size would inhibit his ability to scurry through the mob the way his Rengar side-kick could.
Once they reached the center of the common area, Aldo took a sharp turn to the right, leading them toward another tunnel jutting off of the large, crowded room. He moved so quickly that Kira, Thor, and Dario were nearly separated from him and Kardok.
“That way,” Kira shouted, redirecting her group.
Just as she spun around to continue their trek through the bustling prison common area the hulking image of the orange, four-armed Dralaxian came into view. A shiver of nerves ran up Kira’s spine as she saw him glare in their direction. When his eyes landed on Thor, a menacing smile crossed his lips as he lifted his balled-up fist into the air.
“You’re really good at making friends, you know that?” Kira said to Thor as they rushed to catch up with Aldo.
“It must be my charming smile,” Thor replied.
“That is the first thing I noticed
about you,” Kira said. “After the gun you were pointing in my face and the fact that you were an escaped criminal.”
“Oh, come on, you know the first thing you noticed about me was my rugged good looks,” Thor replied with a cocky smile.
“This way,” Aldo yelled back to them, taking another sharp turn and heading down an even smaller, more cramped feeling hallway than the one they had taken to the ring.
They were forced to march single-file down the narrow passageway. Thankfully, it wasn’t long before they emerged in what appeared to be a long-abandoned boiler room. Pieces of mechanical equipment littered the floor and pipes lined the walls.
For the first time since being incarcerated in Jaantu 7, Kira felt as if she could breathe, despite the slightly stale stench in the air. There were only a handful of other inmates in that deserted, run-down section of the prison. In the far corner, two Rengar appeared to be locked in some sort of under-the-table deal with a group of Terran men. Directly in front of them was a group of Vorian warriors who looked over at Kira and her group with aggressive glares.
“Ignore them,” Aldo said, pushing Kira and the others forward, “they owe me a favor or three, so they won’t be bothering us.”
“Does everyone in here owe you a favor?” Dario asked.
“Just about,” Aldo replied with a shrug.
He led them through the unused boiler room and toward another set of narrow, poorly lit corridors. Ushering them down one of them one-by-one, Aldo checked behind them twice to make sure no one was following.
“Take the second right,” he yelled up to Thor, who was now leading the group. “Then go halfway down the hall and wait.”
Thor turned when he was told and the other followed closely behind him. He stopped suddenly when he felt that he had gone about halfway. Aldo, still at the back of the group, scanned their surroundings one more time before pushing his way to the front. There, he scurried ahead to the end of the hall and looked both ways, making sure no one was anywhere nearby.
“Good,” he said, turning around and giving a thumb’s up to Kardok.
“Good,” Kardok repeated, pushing his way past Dario, Kira, and Thor.
He lazily marched up to one of the metal slabs lining the hallway. Kira and the others watched with curiosity as he pressed his hands into the wall and took a sharp breath. As he began to exhale, he leaned forward, pushing back a panel that was five feet high, two feet wide, and easily six inches thick.
“Whoa,” Kira gasped.
“Now you see why we needed to go back for him,” Aldo said, rushing up to join them.
“I think Thor probably could have done that,” Kira said.
Kardok looked back at them a slightly hurt expression on his face. “Aldo needs me,” he said firmly, lifting up the heavy metal panel and slamming it down firmly on the floor.
“You’re right,” Kira said, holding out her hands defensively and taking a slight step back. “Sorry. Thor could not have done that.”
A grin flashed across Kardok’s face as he pushed the panel to the side and took a step into the small, hidden compartment.
“This is my workspace,” Aldo explained, pushing his way through the group and following Kardok inside. “It took me a little while to build, and it’s not very big, but it’ll do the trick.”
Dario followed Aldo inside, commenting on the small size of the secret room. Kira moved to follow him, but Thor reached out and stopped her.
“I could have done that,” he said, smiling down at her confidently.
“I know,” she said, wrapping her arms around his waist.
“I could have taken down that Dralaxian, too,” he added.
“I don’t think so,” she said, smiling up at him as she lifted herself onto her tip toes and planted a soft kiss on his cheek.
“I just needed more time,” he replied defensively.
“Come on,” she said, taking a step back and grabbing hold of his hand. “We have other things to worry about. Stroking your ego will have to wait until after we’re done saving the galaxy.”
Ducking just a little, she squeezed into the small, tight space. Once Thor followed her in, the feeling of being squished into a tight space once again caused a ripple of nerves to run up Kira’s spine.
“Everyone in?” Aldo asked. “Good. Kardok, close it up!”
Kardok, not seeming to notice or care about the exceedingly cramped quarters, shuffled his way back toward the hideout’s opening. Dario had to wiggle around him as he charged forward, and Kira and Thor were forced to press their backs against the cold metal walls. It wasn’t until Kardok set the heavy metal panel back in place and slid back to the front of the tiny room that Kira and Thor were finally able to move about somewhat freely.
“Like I said, it’s small,” Aldo explained once everyone was settled in.
Aldo sat in front of a small console while the others crowded in around him. The holographic screen in front of him was blank, and the only lights that emitted from the pieced together console were that of the lines of buttons running up and down the control pads.
Dario, who was leaning in and examining the equipment closely asked, “what is it exactly?”
“It’s a comm system,” Aldo replied, looking back at everyone. “It’s built on an unmonitored frequency that will allow us to send messages as far as the Galactic Bazaar. Our plan was to radio out there in hopes of finding someone on the outside that could get us out.”
“Lucky for you, we have people out there that will get us out,” Dario said happily.
“All we have to do is figure out how to get a message to Alaria, Bron, and Vinnie, and we’re home free,” Kira added.
“Well, that would be all we had to do,” Aldo began, “if this thing actually worked.”
“It doesn’t work?” Thor asked, his tone agitated. “You brought us out here, crammed us in this tiny hole of a hideout, and got our hopes up just to tell us it doesn’t work?”
“It doesn’t work yet,” Aldo said, turning back to face the screen in front of him. “I’m just missing two parts. Two tiny little parts are all I need to make this thing sing.”
“Two parts doesn’t sound like too much,” Dario said hopefully.
“It’s not,” Aldo replied. “I mean, it wouldn’t be if we were anywhere but here. The problem is, here getting your hands…”
“Or paws,” Thor quipped.
Aldo shot him a glare before continuing. “To get a hold of pretty much anything, you have to be willing to pay.”
“We’re willing to pay,” Dario said.
“I’m sure you are. But, pay with what?” Aldo asked.
“Whatever you have to sell,” Thor said.
“I deal more in favors and bribes than material possessions,” Aldo replied.
“Like hell you do,” Kira said with a chuckle. “How would you have gotten a hold of all of this if you didn’t have something to trade in exchange?”
“I may have a few things,” Aldo admitted. “But nothing valuable enough to trade for what we need.”
“What do we need, exactly?” Dario asked.
Before Aldo could answer, a high-pitched siren began to sound. All of them shuddered back against the blaring noise, their hands flying up to their ears.
“We’ll have to discuss this another time,” Aldo yelled, motioning for Kardok to open the panel.
“What the hell is that?” Thor asked.
“The nightly call,” Aldo replied, pushing his way forward, his tiny hands covering his very large ears. “It’s time to report to our cells. The damn thing won’t stop until we do.”
“We don’t have a cell!” Dario called out.
"Yes, you do," Aldo said, motioning quickly toward the breast pocket of Dario's suit. "There."
“Glad someone explained that to us before,” Kira said as they followed Aldo out of the hideout.
Once in the hall, they waited, each of them wincing back in pain against the screeching alarm, for Kardok to close up
the tiny hideaway. Once he did, he quickly slapped his hands over his ears and took off marching down the narrow corridor. Aldo scurried quickly behind him.
Once they reached the center of The Pits, Aldo and Kardok stopped and turned to face them. “We’ll meet here tomorrow after lunch,” Aldo said. He then leaned in and checked the number on Dario’s jumpsuit again. “You go that way,” he said, directing them toward a rickety ladder on the opposite side of the common area.
